“I do not feel isolated being the minority, it becomes strength for me to succeed.

“What’s more important is the determination to gain knowledge and not be shy to ask and to adapt,” said the school librarian who aspires to further his studies in shipping at the Malaysian Maritime Academy.

Muhammad Daniel said he had no difficulty in learning because the teachers taught him in dual-language to make it easier to understand the use of sentences and words, mainly for Chinese language and Chinese Literature subjects.

He also said that mixing with Chinese friends at school also helped him to improve his understanding of the language.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Daniel’s father, Idrus Md Zin, 42, said that he decided to send his eldest and three other sons to Chinese medium schools to improve the command of their third language.

“Chinese language is becoming increasingly important and it is an advantage to Muhammad Daniel in the future,” said Idrus who runs a food delivery business with his wife, Suhani Maarof, 42. – BERNAMA